Origins: Adler
by shannyfish
Summary: With the agents of the DEO being investigated on their knowledge of J'onn J'onzz, we delve into the past of Agent Alice Adler and how she was recruited. Takes place during "Manhunter". Part of the Agents of J'onzz series.
"What's going on?"

"Looks like they're taking the boss and Danvers in," Vasquez reported.

Alice Adler looked over at her wife. This was definitely shocking news. It had come out not long before that their boss was in fact an alien. At first, this had been shocking news. Since then, though, it had gone around that the man that they had called boss...he'd been running the DEO as Hank Henshaw for eleven years, which meant that _everyone_ that she could think of had been recruited by the man. "You've got to be kidding."

" _Shut up_ ," Benanti muttered before she sipped her coffee.

Putting the lid on her to-go mug, her mind raced. There was no way that they were going to lose the boss and Danvers. That just wasn't going to happen. "What are they calling them?" Adler asked.

"What do you think?" Vasquez questions as she poured coffee into her Browncoats mug. "Harper's labeling them traitors."

"Crap."

"And we're all on their docket to interview...and then hopefully they'll _leave_."

Alice could help but think that what Vasquez was saying was right on point and she was quite certain that all of the DEO was concerned would agree as well. Even though the boss hadn't really been the person that they'd thought he was when they'd been recruited and all of this time, but that didn't change the person he was. They'd done a lot of good over the years, but she was certain that these military types didn't see it that way.

She'd seen Colonel Harper and she'd not been impressed one bit, to her...he'd seemed like a lot of men she'd known through the years. He'd just seemed angry and stuck in his ways. From the looks of him and how he'd sounded, Alice had no idea how he'd made it up the ranks to colonel except that it was likely only because he was abrasive and happened to have a penis.

"This is going to a fucking witch hunt…" Alice mumbled before sipping her coffee. "I have paperwork to do, I don't need this crap. Besides the boss apparently being a huge green alien, what's the problem anyways?"

"Yeah, _Love_ , maybe we don't talk about him like that," Lara said gently as she patted her wife's arm. "Keep us a family...together."

Sighing, Alice knew that she was right. That didn't make this easier. There was a reason why she decided to join the boss and the DEO all those years back. "What are they going to do? Court martial me?"

"I hear they're taking them to some...Cadmus," Vasquez said before turning and heading away.

Lara looked at her seriously. "That doesn't sound like some white sand beach resort."

* * *

As much as Alice wanted to give them crap, she tried to remain neutral...at least until Colonel Harper started to be an ass (because that time would come) and she'd told herself _then_ she could give him a piece of her mind. So, she sat down and let them hook her up to the polygraph. This was going to be so freaking easy. She knew that she could easily tell them some sob story and they'd believe her...she was _that_ good...she'd been _trained_ to be that good.

Lucy Lane spoke up first once everything was set and they sat across from her in their pristine military uniforms. "Is your name Alice Adler."

"Yes."

"Did you have any indication that the man you knew as Hank Henshaw was actually an alien?"

"No."

"Any red flags?"

"No."

"You've been working for the man for nearly _four years_ and _nothing_?" Harper asked, standing up now, his hands crossed over his chest, and sort of moving towards where she sat. Alice was certain that he was trying to position himself in a way that he thought would make her stress, feeling like he was looming over her. Really, she was just holding herself back from decking the idiot.

 _This was BS_.

"He's always been a good man-"

" _He's not a man_!" Harper practically wailed. "He's an _alien_! _A Green Martian_! Why do you people have it _so stuck_ in your head that he's a _man_?!"

Adler let that slide. "He's a good _person_ ," she corrected. "Who...happens to be _male_...as far as I know." She didn't miss the small smirk that seemed to grace Major Lane's lips for just a moment or the fact that Lane seemed to purposely speak up before Harper could to intercept his stupidity.

"J'onn J'onzz recruited you four years ago?" Lucy questioned quite loudly.

"Is that _his real name_?" Adler asked with a slight tilt of her head as she thought that over. "J'onn J'onzz…"

"Are you _enamored_ with him or something?" Harper queried.

"I'm _married_ actually," Adler told him.

"Aren't you the one who's married to a _fellow_ agent?"

"Agent Benanti, _Sir_."

"I'm sure that we'll be interviewing him shortly." She didn't miss the look on Lane's face and how it looked like she was going to correct him, but he kept talking. "We'll see if he's as _clueless_ as you have been for the last four years under the command of an alien infiltrator."

"That should be quite interesting for you, _Sir_ ," was all she replied with a smile. If only she could be in the room when Harper realized that Benanti was her _wife_. "Do you need to hear how he recruited me, Sir?"

"Might as well make sure all the facts line up," he said and then looked over to Lucy Lane, who just shrugged in response.

"Go ahead and tell us, Agent Adler," Lucy said calmly.

"It was about four years ago... _apparently_...though it seems like so much longer... _in a good way_ ," Alice started to recount. "I was an officer…"

* * *

 **FOUR YEARS EARLIER...**

It was late, but she wasn't ready to go home.

No matter how much she dedicated herself to the job, it never seemed good enough. Her paperwork was always the best, perfectly filled out, concisely worded, and she even used proper spelling and punctuation. That couldn't be said for most of her co-workers. She also was always the one covering and the one who was pushing to be noticed.

None of it seemed to matter.

The only time she ever got noticed was when she went off on a male co-worker. It wasn't her fault that the majority of her male co-workers either thought that she slept her way to where she was (which she didn't) or they hit on her and got pissed when she turned them down (not her fault that none of them were her type, plus she didn't need those kinds of complications when it came to her job).

She was angry.

Sometimes that anger got the best of her, but most of the time she knew how to properly channel it. Tonight, she was at the range, practicing and honing her skills. She was at the range a lot. She liked to make sure that she was proficient with any weapon she might have to use or come across. Alice didn't want to be caught off guard by a large and unexpected kickback or the gun's weight not being familiar in her hands.

The paper target was pretty much obliterated at her target zone, so she called for it to be returned to her. She set down and removed the clip from the gun she was using before taking off her ear and eye protection. She was done for the night.

"Are you Alice Adler?"

Looking over her shoulder, she realized that she wasn't alone. She was a little embarrassed that she hadn't seen him come in or noticed him until he spoke up. He wasn't familiar, but he was dressed in a suit. That could mean a number of things. "Who's asking?"

"Hank Henshaw," he said. "I was hoping to have a few minutes of your time?"

Weary of who the guy was, she shrugged. "What is it that you _want_?" Alice stared at him, he seemed a little amused at her question.

"Straight to the point, I like that," Henshaw said. "I was hoping to offer you a position within my operation."

"What department with you with?"

Henshaw looked around and then back to her. They were alone. "I work for a department that doesn't exist. I've looked over your dossier and I'm surprised that you haven't been promoted above patrol."

"Believe me, I know," she said with some resentment. "I've taken all the tests… Done every single fucking thing that was needed. I don't know why I'm still here-"

"Here's your chance to make a change," Henshaw told her. "I can promise you that the position is challenging and that you will be paid better than you are now."

"That's not what I'm concerned about," she brushed off. Pay was nothing. She could make whatever work. That wasn't what had brought her to become a police officer in the first place. It had been to serve the community, to protect people, and to contribute.

"I can guarantee you that no one in my unit is treated like you have," Henshaw assured. "That kind of sexism and disrespect isn't tolerated."

"What kind of non-existent unit is this?"

"We keep the world safe from alien threats," he told her.

"Seriously?"

"Are you up for the task?"

"I don't know," she mumbled, thinking about it. Alice knew that she'd hate to leave what she had with the police department only to have to work her way up in a different organization.

"There is one thing you should know," Henshaw spoke up. "There's not a lot of ladder climbing. If you're hoping for a rank, then it's not the place for you. There's only director and then agents. That's it."

It was like he could read her mind. Alice blinked a couple of times. "That's...actually...it sounds like it might be a good fit."

"I can understand your hesitation. How about you come in? Check things out and give me your decision then?"

She wondered if this was like a ride along. No matter, it sounded better than anything else she had planned for the night. It was about to be a frozen dinner and a beer (or two) and then reading her book before bed. "Does it involve relocation?" she asked after thinking about home.

"Actually, yes...north a bit," Henshaw informed her. "Is that going to be a problem?"

"Nope," Alice said with a shrug. "My lease is up next month anyways."

"Maybe the stars have aligned in our favor then."

* * *

"All those years ago," Alice told them. "I never realized that he was changing my life."

"So? He changed your life because he took you out of an environment with sexist men?" Harper questioned, irritation and cockiness in his voice.

She didn't miss the look of Lucy's own irritation on her face at Harper's question. Alice just stared at him, her voice completely calm and level. "Well...apparently not completely, but then...not everyone can adapt to the changing times." She sucked in a breath before speaking again. "He gave me a purpose. He showed me that my contributions were valued and inadvertently gave me a family."

"It sounds like you were recruited at the right time," Lucy commented.

"I was," Alice said quickly. "I am so much better and so much happier with this job than I was at patrol. I would likely have still be stuck there while inadequate men were promoted over me." She shrugged. "You're going to hear a lot of stories of people who were found at just the right times in their lives and recruited into the DEO. We knew him as Hank Henshaw, but J'onn J'onzz saved a lot of lives...changed them...and then he trained us to save American lives...and lives worldwide. You probably are unaware of exactly how many lives have been in danger since he's been in charge of the DEO. The entire world owes him a thank you." She shrugged. "I suppose the United State military just likes to thank people by trying to villainize heroes, shove them into cells, and expect those that have helped him save the world. I mean, we would have honestly been okay with just donuts…"

That apparently set off Colonel Harper. "Are you ser-"

"You know, that's enough, Agent Adler. Thank you," Lucy said quickly as she got to her feet. "If we have any further questions, we'll be in touch."

Alice got to her feet. "Sure...and just so you know, the boss prefers the glazed ones…"

* * *

The End.


End file.
